All tagged Tasmania
When you are part of a movement for social change it feels like you are in a large family tribe, all working towards a common goal. Art can be a powerful way to open people’s hearts and expand their thinking. Tribes grow as entities while growing their members. Art + activism = change.
I’ve become a passionate advocate for protecting the old growth native forests. Joining the 140 other artists at the Art 4 Takayna forest residency in Tasmania has inspired me to advocate for the trees and all the plant and animal species that live in the forests. These are our wilderness heritage places. I want to know that when I am no longer here on earth, the trees will breathe for me.
Forests dwell deep in our imagination. They are the places of childhood tree-houses and stories of enchantment. Yet also a bit scary and wild. To foray into the forest you need to be prepared. Its immensity can be overwhelming, perhaps even life changing. I’m not sure what to expect when I venture into the deepest rainforest of Takayna in Tasmania with the Bob Brown Foundation.
When you know that it is time to take action, to ‘walk the talk’ and go out on a limb. Literally! The exciting news is I’m off to takayna/Tarkine in the wild north west of Tasmania to make art about the threatened ancient rainforests in the wilderness. Am I nervous? Hell yeah!
What are the most important ideas to include in an artist statement about your artwork? After my artist residency in Oatlands, I wrote how the architectural features in the town and its houses became time portals I used to enter colonial thinking. Peeling back the fragments of layered wallpapers hinted at what my paintings were about and how they responded to this historical town.
Composition can be a tricky skill to master. Sometimes no matter what you do the elements of a piece won’t sit together on the paper. Do you tear it up and start again or persevere until things fall into place? Both actions require courage and both can be a way to resolve the trickiest of challenges.
You need to be bold when you commit to your line drawing. Especially when it is drawn up in ink. I’ve needed to feel bold when committing to adding motifs of lights and lamps to shine a light on the history of Tasmania with its wars and period of martial law. Cracks in the edifices allows the light to shine in and is the first step in truth telling.
What views did the colonists want to create in their newly invaded and possessed land? Most held ideas about what ‘civilisation’ and ‘society’ meant and so forever changed the landscape to conform to this point of view. My preoccupation has been how to find a gentle way into post colonial viewpoints using windows as portals. To mourn what was lost and hold a vision for the future.
There are so many reasons to feel despondent, especially if you are staying in a place which has a violent history. Yet after two days of drawing murky black ink shapes, I knew I had to find a way through to the other side of despair. Enter Dr Bob Brown and his rallying call to action and keeping hope alive.
